NY Jets news: CB Isaiah Dunn 'making waves' at 2021 OTAs

Justin Fried

NY Jets, Isaiah Dunn / Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

The NY Jets are expected to have an open competition at the cornerback position this spring and summer. And one player who's already making quite the first impression is undrafted rookie Isaiah Dunn.

Dunn has been one of the stars of OTAs thus far earning praise from numerous people in attendance. So much so that Bleacher Report's Maurice Moton recently listed him as one of eight rookies "making waves" at OTAs.

The undrafted rookie out of Oregon State has even been elevated to the first-team defense with Blessuan Austin out nursing a minor injury starting opposite Bryce Hall in the base defense at times.

The Jets are high on Dunn's potential, as evidenced by the record-breaking contract they handed him shortly following the 2021 NFL Draft — the largest deal for an undrafted cornerback in NFL history.

The NY Jets have been impressed with Isaiah Dunn.

A former standout at Oregon State, Dunn has a background in track and ran a blazing 4.36 40-yard dash at his pro day. It wasn't enough to get him drafted, but he received offers from numerous teams following the draft.

The Jets believe that Dunn could not only make the 53-man roster, but earn a role in a very inexperienced secondary before long.

Dunn will compete with the likes of Hall, Austin, and rookies Jason Pinnock and Brandin Echols for playing time at outside cornerback. Pinnock has also received some work with the first-team offense, but Dunn has outplayed him to this point.

D.J. Bien-Aime II of the NY Daily News had the following to say about the promising young cornerback.

"Keep an eye on [Isaiah] Dunn, one of the undrafted free agents Gang Green added to the roster, as the offseason continues to progress as the former Oregon State star made some nice pass breakups throughout the OTAs that have been available to the media."
D.J. Bien-Aime II

Given the lack of experience in the Jets' secondary, it wouldn't be surprising to see Dunn receive significant playing time early in his career.

We're still a long way away from the start of the regular season and he'll have to carry over his recent success into both minicamp and training camp, but Dunn has made a strong first impression with the Jets coaching staff.

At the very least, Dunn seems primed to earn a spot on the practice squad, if nothing else. That seems to be his floor at the moment.

And as unorthodox as it might sound, his ceiling might very well be a Week 1 starter.

Justin Fried

Justin Fried is an editor for FanSided who has over seven years of experience covering the NFL and various other sports. A diehard Jets fan since birth, Justin has served as the editor for The Jet Press since 2019, interviewing athletes such as Sauce Gardner, Curtis Martin, LaDainian Tomlinson, Joe Klecko, and many others. Justin has also worked closely with brands like Red Bull to help highlight the niche sectors of the sporting world. His four-part series on the sport of breaking remains one of his proudest pieces of work. In his spare time, Justin is an avid pro wrestling fan who is fortunate enough to have traveled to nearly 30 different countries.